This invention relates to a garment hanger and more particularly to a hanger which will support and display garments in a more attractive manner.
Garment hangers and variations thereof are well known in the art. Some garment hangers are used by individuals for home use, while others are utilized for display by manufacturers or distributors. In the past, little distinction has been made between the garment hanger useful for individual home use and those hangers provided for display.
The basic concern heretofore addressed in connection with the manufacture of garment hangers, has been to provide the hanger with appropriate structure to support various parts of a garment. For example, heretofore, attention has been given to provide useful structure on the hanger to accommodate a two piece garment, such as a suit, or a skirt and blouse, or other types of garments having individual parts. U.S. Pat. No. 2,991,919 provides a two stepped arrangement for the lower portion of a garment which accommodates different waist sizes. In this manner, the waist is positioned tightly on the hanger and depends therefrom in an attractive manner. Similarly, U.S. Pat. No. 3,007,616 provides a hanger with angularly placed tabs depending from the lower frame of the hanger to accommodate different waist sizes of a pair of trousers. Also, this patent teaches the adjustment of the side portions of the hanger so that the distance, to which the pants depend beneath a supported jacket, can be changed.
Other patents similarly address the same problem of providing structure on the hanger to accommodate various parts of a garment. U.S. Pat. No. 3,087,660 provides a two stepped arrangement which can also support waisted garments of different sizes. U.S. Pat. No. 3,249,270 provides a hanger including a waist band support which permits the garment to be twisted around the support to thereby take up the slack and gather the extra material around the waist portion thereby providing a more aesthetic display of two piece garments.
While these patents have addressed the problem of accommodating the various parts of a garment having different sections, there is another problem in connection with the displaying of garments which is not at all addressed by these prior art hangers. When displaying a garment, the garment is hung on the hanger and placed on a display rod for viewing by the customer. The garment is designed to be worn by an individual who has shape and form and a thickness dimension. However, when hung on a regular hanger, or other garment support means, the garment will hang in a flat manner without any form or shape and will tend to droop or dangle as it is suspended from the hanger. This drooping provides a very unattractive and unappealing appearance to the customers.
In order to provide some body, shape and form to the article of clothing supported on the hanger, it has hithertofore been the practice to first add some padding, such as a tissue paper, regular paper, or even cardboard, to give some shape to the garment. The tissue paper or other shaping material, is placed either directly within the garment, such as in its sleeve or other enclosed portion, or is rather placed directly around the hanger by wrapping it around the sidewalls and the reinforcing ribs. After the tissue paper, or other shaping material is wrapped around the hanger, a sheet or cover in the form of a draping sheath is then placed on the hanger to cover the tissue paper, or other supporting material. On top of this covering sheath is finally placed the garment for display. By means of the tissue paper, or other supporting material wrapped around the hanger, there is provided some form, shape, and body substance to the garment hanging on the hanger to make it more attractive and eye appealing to the customer.
However, the wrapping of the hanger provides a time consuming operation and frequently requires the use of a skilled designer to appropriately place the tissue paper or other supporting material at the proper locations for each garment. For example, in hanging a suit jacket, a form or shape is needed in the upper shoulder portion while the lower portion can hang freely. When hanging a skirt, some tissue paper may be needed around the waist portion, and extra tissue paper may be needed around the hip portion. This requires time, experience, and skill to apropriately place the tissue paper on the hanger to obtain the proper form and shape needed for a specific garment.